Skins are long strips of material that are positioned on the underside of a ski or snowboard for the purpose of ascending snow-covered slopes. Skins can be composed of any friction inducing material including felt, rubber, fur, etc. Skins are generally designed to increase friction between the snow and the ski or snowboard. By increasing the friction on the bottom of the ski or snowboard, a user can slide or skin up a snow covered slope without sliding back down in the process. The skins can then be removed to allow the user to ski or snowboard down the slope without interfering with the downhill performance of the skis or snowboard.
The process of skinning up a steep snow-covered slope involves a tremendous amount of physical work. Various inefficiencies often arise if the skins are not properly attached to the bottom of the skis or snowboard. For example, if a skin becomes detached or misaligned with a ski or snowboard, the user will be forced to stop and fix the problem or exert even more physical effort to ascend the slope. Therefore, it is desirable to incorporate a reliable skin attachment system with a pair of skins such that a user can efficiently ascend a snow-covered slope without problems or complications.
Conventional skin attachment systems involve temporarily affixing the skins to the skis or snowboard with a sticky material such as glue. The particular type of glue must remain sticky at low temperatures and somewhat moist conditions. In addition to affixing the skins to the skis or snowboard, it is generally advisable to also attach the skins to one or both ends of the skis or snowboard to ensure that the skins do not bend or fold. The skins are attached to the skis or snowboard with some form of skin attachment device. The skin attachment device may be permanently stitched onto one or both ends of the skins or require the skins to be folded onto them selves for attachment. Conventionally, a front end skin attachment device is a substantially fixed non-adjustable shape. The front end skin attachment device is simply looped over the front tip of the ski or snowboard. Rear skin attachment devices generally involve some form of stretching mechanism in addition to an attachment device. For example, a conventional rear skin attachment device could involve attaching a rubber strip with a hook to the rear portion of the skin. The hook and rubber strip could be stretched to the back end of the ski or snowboard and hooked over a flat surface thereby effectively stretching the skin and securing it to the rear end of the ski or snowboard.
Unfortunately, as skis and snowboards have evolved, conventional skin attachment devices are no longer effective at attaching skins to modern skis and snowboards. Modern skis and snowboards come in a wide variety of widths and tip shapes. Some skis and snowboards are extremely wide for powder snow conditions while others are relatively narrow for hard pack snow conditions. Many modern skis and snowboards have evolved to include curved tips on both the front and rear to allow users to travel in either direction. Skis or snowboards may also be equipped with split tail ends for powder snow condition performance.
In addition, it has been discovered that there is an optimal position for skin attachment devices to secure the skin to the front or rear end of a ski or snowboard. The optimal position ensures a reliable attachment but does not impede efficient ascension. Skis and snowboards almost always include an upward curved section at one or both ends of the skis or snowboard. If the skin attachment device is positioned too close to the actual tip of the skis or snowboard, the skin may accidentally detach from the ski or snowboard forcing the user to stop and reattach it. Likewise, if the skin attachment device is positioned too far away from the actual tip and beyond the curved portion, the skin attachment device will act like a snowplow and significantly impede a user's ability to efficiently ascend up a slope. Because of the wide variety of widths and tip shapes, it becomes almost impossible to manufacture a single skin attachment device that can be positioned in the optimal position for attaching a skin to any ski or snowboard.